You're Falling but I'll be There When You Land (Always, I Promised)
by mahniindustry
Summary: This is a human!AU and how they might have dealt with the news that Loki was adopted if they weren't so emotionally unstable. It's better than the summary makes it seem. He was falling and there was nothing but him, his tightening chest (he couldn't breathe), and the nothingness of the space between the ocean below and the ledge he toppled off. And as he was falling he remembered


This was supposed to be an original work but it became a fan fiction *shakes head in disappointment* So have fun with it.You're Falling but I'll be There When you Land (Always, I Promised)

Loki was falling, literally, arms windmilling even though he had already pitched backwards and terrified green eyes meeting Thor's (always confident and smug,) wide blue ones. He was falling and there was nothing but him, his tightening chest (he couldn't _breathe_ ), and the nothingness of the space between the ocean below and the ledge he toppled off. And as he was falling, he remembered. Remembered when he broke his arm and his brother didn't leave his side, worrying and wiping away tears, and yelling at the guards (hurry the _hell_ up!(the swear sounding foreign on his youthful tongue)). He remembered his mother soothing him after his night terrors, his small form falling asleep with a mother's love surrounding him and a lullaby playing in his head. He remembered when his brother was about to leave for summer camp (that, at the time, would seem to last for an eternity), promising that no matter what happens, he will always be there. Gold eyes opened (when had they closed?) and he knew that when he dragged his wet body onto the sand (the same place his brother taught him how to swim, all those years back), his brother would be there (always, like he promised), apologies dropping from his lips like stones, weighed down with guilt and worry. And he would laugh it off, remind the (the foolish, arrogant, sweet, caring) oaf to warn him next time before pushing him off a cliff. Needless to say they went cliff diving again the next day.

He was falling, metaphorically. The shaky trust between his father and him cracking and breaking and there was nothing but him and betrayal (it felt like someone ripping his heart out), and the nothingness of the chasm between them both. And as he was falling, he locked his green eyes with blue eyes filled with misplaced frustrated anger (and the same arrogance (his brother learned from the best after all)). He was falling and this time he wasn't sure he could laugh it off, wasn't sure he wasn't going to drown, (these were waters too deep to swim in). And he remembered, all the times he was overlooked, (not out of malice or neglect) because his brother (not really, never was) had done something 'better'. Remembered how even though his mother and brother convinced him that his father loved him, there was something off,his father's hugs didn't feel as warm as his mother's (he always had wondered if his father didn't like him). He is falling, and nothingness has become a cold, hard slab of concrete, causing him to shatter beyond repair, not that he notices (he is far too numb to feel any pain), nor does he realize that Thor was ready to pick up the pieces, risking being cut by the razor-sharp shards (never let it be said that he wouldn't risk everything to help his brother).

As he watched his baby brother fall, Thor felt that he had failed as a big brother. Thor remembered how he first 'met' Loki (Loki hated that nickname, but that only made Thor love it all the more). His mother had only just let Thor, into the room, letting him look upon his younger brother for the first time, and instantly the six year old was taken with the cooing child. He tentatively touched the child's cheek (the only thing he was ever known to do gently), worried that he might accidentally break the fragile thing like he did so many other things (and in the future this worry would never leave him (even as his lanky brother grew stronger)). But that would be long after the ivory skinned boy would prove his whiplike mind and his love of pranks, and for now, Thor was watching his new baby brother Loki (he found the name to be appropriate, powerful). Thor cooed at the black haired 8-month old, smiling when his finger was gripped tight, before asking his mother if he could hold the baby. The baby gurgled and tried to wriggle away as Thor held on tight, "I won't drop you, I'm always going to be there, I promise." It's a bold thing to promise at such a young age but Thor knew (knew in a way that could only be associated devout), he would stand by this promise.

And he did, he stood by this promise, even though the efforts left him tired and aching. Even when his friends (Loki never liked them) begged him to leave his baby brother hanging. But he wouldn't and right now his baby brother (in everything but blood) needed him most. He would pick up the shattered remains and try to glue them back together (and if blood was drawn, maybe then Loki would see they all bleed the same red).

Loki was broken and he felt that some pieces had been lost but that's okay, he will be okay as long as he has his brother. And yes Loki was falling but soon he will land and maybe he will be irreparably damaged but in the end he will be fine because Thor will be there to fix him (always, like he promised).


End file.
